Kurosama's Beginnings
by Xangelic-demonicX
Summary: Very simply a massive Train Heartnet dedication. His past life in words. Please R&R.
1. Alone in the Rain

**Chapter 1: Alone in the Rain**

That day, it was raining. I could still remember it, as clear as day. Ironic, eh?

So, here's my life story. What changed me, how I became...the Black Cat.

"No! How could you?"

"Heh. So it looks like I've become weak too," Zagiene said, shriveled up against the wall.

"But, I wanted to kill you! Now I'll look stupid for making you my target!"

I stood there, in the rain, furiously demanding that this wasn't true. Of course, I wanted to kill him myself, but not now, not so soon. As far as I knew, he was my only connection to the real world.

"Oh, so I was your target eh? Interesting, now Train, don't forget, this is the reality of this world, the weak die and the strong live. Live on, Train, trust no one, question the unquestionable, and become truly strong..." and those were the last words Zagiene ever spoke.

I knelt beside him in the rain, feeling truly helpless. I couldn't do anything in the world. Absolutely nothing. I felt insignificant; it was as if I was but a little seedling trying to sprout, but I was trampled on before I was given the chance to prove myself.

_Live on, become truly strong._

Those were the only words I had to go by. I had no idea how I wanted to spend my life, but the problem now was, I would have to learn how to survive first.

"Hey kid, what are you doing?" a voice came.

I turned around rapidly.

"Why do you have a gun in your hand?" the person asked. "And..uh...who's that?"

He pointed at Zagiene.

"I...I didn't do it!"

"Hm, so why do you have a gun in your hand?" the person asked again.

I stared at the gun, and then back to the person. Then back at the gun again.

"I need..." I whispered.

"Here, hold on, I'll call help." the person said, pulling out a phone slowly.

"No, don't!"

I aimed for his cellphone. BOOM! Honestly, though, me still being the amateur I was, I still couldn't withstand the backfiring force of the gun.

Me still being the amateur I was, missed.

Just a couple of seconds later, the person in front of me, collapsed to the ground, right at my feet.

I froze, shaking in the rain. What on earth had I done? Had I become a killer? I stood there pondering my moral values for a minute, until...

I heard sirens.

I looked towards the person's hand, the cellphone and I realized that he had dialed for the police.

"Oh shoot, the police," I cursed.

I ran for dear life. I heard the sirens coming down the street and I bolted in the other direction.

I kept on running, didn't look back. The police didn't follow. Of course, I was only a kid to them.

A kid with no purpose, running aimlessly down the street.

Of course, in the rain, they couldn't even tell I was crying.

A sharp realization hit me. I had no parents, no one that loved me, no one that cared about me, no one that even knew my existence. As far as anyone did care, I didn't have to exist in the world.

No, I was completely, and utterly alone. And there was only one way I could survive in this world.

I had to learn how to kill. Kill for money, kill for food, and kill, to survive...

I burst into tears as I embraced the horrifying truth.


	2. Training Time

**Chapter 2: Training Time**

I ran aimlessly through the streets until I noticed that I was already quite far away from the city and closer to the countryside. I slowed my run to a fast walk and continued down the path of no return. It was as if I turned around, I wouldn't be able to see anything. I could only walk in one direction...forward.

"DAMMIT!" I cursed, kicking the pop can on the street.

I pulled out my gun and shot at the pop can. One, two, three...flying back a few feet with every shot.

"DAMN!"

I ran forward to pick up the pop can. Only two of the bullets had met their mark. The other one, well, I didn't even know where it was.

If I was going to survive in this world, I was going to half to do better. I was going to have to train myself. I promised I would not fire my gun again until I was ready.

I made up my own personalized training workout. Push-ups on one hand, followed by a 30-minute run and sit-ups.

I got hungry pretty quickly.

You really couldn't find a lot of food out on the countryside. I watched in envy as the city lights lit up in the dark night. I was going to have to make a lot of trips back to the city. I prepared myself.

Actually, I really didn't have to prepare anything. All I had was my gun, my only friend. I had promised I wouldn't use it until I was ready, but I decided to bring it, just in case.

I walked down the streets towards the city. People didn't even notice a kid like me; it was as if I was just a ghost walking down an oblivious street.

I approached the nearest market and asked for food.

"I'm sorry, I need some food," I said to the grocer.

"Where are your parents?" the person asked.

"Ain't got any. They were killed a while ago," I said.

"So, who are you living with?" the grocer asked.

I shrugged, not sure how to respond to that.

"I see. Well, do you have any money?" the grocer asked.

I shook my head. I had one hand on my gun for comfort.

"Well, sorry kid, but I can't give you any food if you don't have money," the grocer said.

I nodded, understanding the circumstances. I turned to walk towards the door.

"Oh wait, hold up, kid!" the grocer said.

I turned.

"Here's 3 bottles of milk and a piece of bread, complimentary from me," he said. "I'm sorry, that's the best I can do for you."

I showed no emotion whatsoever, no matter how grateful I was. I fought back tears.

"Thank you," I said.

The grocer smiled back as I walked through the door.

Knowing I wasn't going to have much success at any other grocery store, I walked back towards the countryside.

I drank one full bottle of milk as I was walking and ripped off a small piece of bread too.

"The milk is actually really good," I said to myself.

I felt refreshed after my little meal, and went back to training. The only thing I could do at this point in time was to train.

Get stronger, and stronger.

As the days went by, I trained vigorously with my strength, speed and stamina.

It was the only thing I could do to pass the time.

I continued to pay frequent stops to the grocers' begging for food. I must have been there at least 3 or 4 times a week. It didn't take long (well actually, a whole month or two) until the grocer started to have second thoughts.

"I'm sorry, Train was it? I can't continue to supply you like this anymore. My business isn't doing so well and provide you with free food isn't the best way to help it along. Please understand," he said.

I didn't understand at all.

"But I need to eat, so I can train and get stronger!"

"I know, but there's more to this world than getting stronger, you know. I have a family. I need to take care of them," he said again.

I was about to argue back that he wasn't me. He wouldn't know the pain of being alone. Nor the part about having to depend on your own strength to survive. He wouldn't understand any of it. He was too simple-minded.

He had finally tipped me over the edge.

"That's fine. I'll take it from here."

I pulled out my gun for the first time in a while. The grocer whimpered in fear.

"No, don't!" he said.

"Here's an entry for your philosophy," I said, "The weak die quickly, and the strong live on. Thanks for all your help, but I really need the food."

"No!" he yelled again. "Don't fire!"

BANG!

The man collapsed at the counter.

"Rest in peace."

I gathered all the milk I could find. (I had taken quite a liking to the stuff.) And I made off with some vegetables and bread. What I forgot about was...

"Hey, what are you doing with my husband???" a voice came.

DAMN! DAMN! The witnesses!

I turned myself around and pointed my gun at the woman.

"Wait...aren't you Train?"

Another gasp.

"Is that...my husband?"

Silence.

I couldn't bring myself to pull the trigger. I just couldn't. She pulled out her cell and dialed. I stood there, frozen in time.

_Need to do something, need to do something..._

Without a second thought, I knocked the woman out and bolted out the door. I ran.

Away from the witnesses, away from the city and though I knew it was impossible, I secretly hoped that I could run away from my past.

_Just kill me now._


	3. Infiltration Mission

**Chapter 3: Infiltration Mission**

Despite the gruesome nature of the "incident," I had to admit that I had been strong enough to withstand the recoil from firing the gun.

It was an accomplishment, regardless.

I sat there in the shade of the tree after my morning exercises, staring up at the clouds.

The sky sure looked beautiful that day.

I gripped my gun and spun it around.

"Ah! Target practice time."

Finally. Now that I'd learned how to fire a gun without flying back five feet, I would need to do some target practicing. After all, there's no use to have a gun if you can't aim.

_Target on the red, shoot, drop, roll, duck and shoot again._

I used strange markings on the land to determine my targets. For example, today's target was the hole in that tree over there.

_Target on the red, shoot, drop, roll, duck and shoot again._

Missed. Or, it hit the tree, but it didn't go into the hole. I tried again.

_Target, shoot._

Score. The bullet flew straight threw the hole in the middle of the tree.

_Again, again._

Scored for the second time.

I shot at the tree a couple more times during the day, and I hit the mark every single time from then on. I'd have to get a moving target soon.

Darn it. I'd forgotten about something though. Something important.

"How the hell am I going to stock bullets!!! I've only got a couple left."

Damn. Damn. Damn. It looks like I was going to have to pay a visit to raid the police station sometime soon. Needed to grab some bullets.

Tonight was as good as any. I was prepared. I was ready. Then it's decided, I would go tonight.

Karl's POV

I hated when people called me during work.

"What is it now?"

"Did you hear the news in Rojarna?" the guy asked.

"Yeah, I heard. Grocer shot to death in Rojarna."

"It's quite unusual. Apparently, the wife of the grocer saw a kid doing it too," the guy said.

"Yeah, very unusual. Kid, eh? It's usually a peaceful town, I know."

"Kid's name's Train," the guy on the other end said.

"Train eh? That's interesting. I might pay a visit to Rojarna, it's on the way to my next destination anyways."

"Oh, that's good to hear, we might have to clean up some garbage. I'll come with you," the guy said.

"Yeah, fine, suit yourself. See you later, Baldor."

"Yes, have a nice day," Baldor said.

Train eh? What a strong name.

Train's POV

Raiding the police station didn't look so hard, I scoped the building. Only a couple of security cameras, nothing I couldn't handle.

And if I could kill a grocer without being caught, odds are that I could raid the police station and get away. Hopefully.

Better get started.

I sprinted from my position for the walls of the building. I crawled into a nearby vent and sighed in relief.

That was way too easy.

I started crawling down the vent and surveyed the building.

Combat training room. Office. Ah. Weapon storage room.

I jumped from the vent, into the room, surveying the equipment.

Tasers, guns, ah...bullets. Perfect, until I heard the voice.

"Jack, I'm just going to check inventory, I'll be out in a second," a man said.

SHOOT! Where should I hide? Where should I hide?

The door swung open. Damn.

"Hey kid! What're you doing in here?" the man questioned.

He looked at my right hand, holding the bullets and my left hand, holding the gun.

"What are you doing with those?" the man asked.

By instinct, I pointed the gun at him.

"Freeze."

The man froze.

"Kid, put the gun down," the man persuaded.

I didn't want to. It would have left me defenseless.

"What are you doing Ben?" the man named Jack asked from further down the hallway.

"PUSH THE ALERT BUTTON JACK! It's the ki...!" Ben yelled.

Unfortunately, he didn't get to finish his sentence when the alarm sounded and I fired in defense.

Jack came rushing in.

"Ben? Ben!!!" Jack said.

He looked at me for a split second before I pulled the trigger. I froze, as his body fell, adding to the list of people I killed. And you know what was strange?

I didn't care anymore. I could murder the whole police force in this town and I wouldn't feel a thing. I wouldn't care the slightest bit.

Unfortunately, that was most likely what I was going to have to do. I noticed that I hadn't planned an escape route. I was too short to jump into the vents again. The alarm kept ringing.

I could hear footsteps coming down the hall. They would reach me within seconds. And I did something both stupid, reckless and bold.

I ran towards the sound.

"Freeze, kid," one said as I turned the corner.

"Don't want to," was my simple answer.

I opened fire on them. They weren't even prepared, they didn't have a chance.

For one, half of them didn't even have guns. A quarter of them were just standing there, waiting to be slaughtered. And the funniest thing was that, there were only about twenty of them there, and that was exaggerating.

Of course, small town, you couldn't expect much of a police force.

The bodies piled up when I finished firing. I stood there, feeling completely cool and collected. I ran back to stock some more bullets from the storage room and then bolted for the exit.

I was just turning the corner when...

BOOM!

I was thrown back five feet at least. When the mist cleared, I saw two large shadows, one in the distance, and one right next to me.

"What the?"

A large round ball flew right by my face as I dodged it.

"Kid, you've made quite a mess here," a voice said.


	4. The Orphan

**Chapter 4: The Orphan**

I stared at the large guy holding the rocket launcher.

"I'm Baldor, and uh...you must be Train Heartnet. Let me introduce you to Heimdall, my partner," Baldor said.

And with that, he swung at me again with the rocket launcher. I thought back to my training.

_Jump. Roll. Shoot twice._

As his weapon knocked me against the wall, I shot twice and forced the weapon back to him as he caught it.

"Heh. You're not half bad, kid," Baldor said. "You could definetly be a Number when you grow up. Too bad that's not going to happen."

He threw his weapon at me and I could tell he was putting a lot of force behind it. I pulled up my gun in front of me to defend myself when...

"HOLD IT!" someone yelled.

I closed my eyes and waited for the pain when the rocket launcher came crashing down on my head.

It never came.

"Baldor, hold your excitement," the voice said again. "I wanna see this kid."

I opened my eyes. A kind man stared at me.

"Oh. Where are my manners? I'm Karl, and you must be...Train," he said, extending his hand out.

I straightened up from my battle position, sensing no danger. However, I didn't take his hand.

"Get out of the way, Karl," Baldor said, "Got a mission here."

Karl stared at me questioningly.

"Hold it, Baldor, I want to take this kid in," the man named Karl said.

"Damn it, Karl! Why is it that you always have something for these kids?" Baldor complained. "He's my target, and I want to kill him."

I stood there, watching the two exchange words.

"Fine, fine. Come back in a few years. You can TRY to kill him then," Karl said, winking at me.

"And give me one good reason why I shouldn't kill him now," Baldor said.

"Well first of all, he's pretty much defenseless and there's no point in killing such a weak target..."

I flinched, hand on the trigger.

"Secondly, you'll have more of a challenge when he grows up more. And lastly, he'll be stronger than you in about 5 years. I can personally guarantee it," Karl said.

Now, it was Baldor's turn to flinch.

"Alright, but I'll come back searching for him, and I won't hesitate to kill him," Baldor said with reluctance.

"Don't worry, I'll give Sephiria and the Elders a call. You won't be reprimanded for this. Ha, to think it was such a small kid causing all this trouble!" Karl said, laughing.

And with that, Baldor stared at me coldly and left.

"Come on, kid, let's go too," Karl said.

I stood my ground. Karl stared at me. It was a long minute, interrupted by the growling of my stomach.

"Oh, there's tons of food over at my place!" he said.

I refused to budge.

"You can train all you want for all I care. You will have to anyways. That guy's going to come looking for you in a couple of years, and it's best you be ready," he said.

I stood there motionless.

"Just come, I'll provide you with everything you need," the man said.

I looked to my gun.

"Yes, including the bullets," he said reassuringly.

What was with this guy? I didn't get him at all. I had a gun in my hand, ready to fire at any given moment, and he was defenseless. How could he start such a cool conversation with me?

But for some reason, I was happy. It was like, all of a sudden I felt that I belonged somewhere. I had a home for the first time in a while.

"Come along kid, you've got a lot to do," Karl said, hand out once more.

A lot of questions were running through my head at that moment, but the nagging feeling of needing to belong somewhere overpowered them all. Truthfully, I wanted to take his hand, wanted to listen to his words and hope they were true.

So, I did the only thing I could do, I took his hand.


	5. Karl's Mansion

**Chapter 5: Karl's Mansion**

It was a long car ride from the police station to his house. He was completely silent, in fact, I was quite comfortable with silence, but I'd had a few questions unanswered in my head and that felt very uncomfortable.

"What's going to happen at the police station?"

"Don't worry, Chronos will cover it up for you," Karl said.

Chronos? Chronos.

"What's Chronos?"

"It's a powerful organization that controls 1/3 of the world. It's meant to retain peace and stability in the world," Karl explained.

1/3, ouch. And how come I never knew this?

"What's a Number?"

"Ah...well, a Number is like an expert assassin for Chronos. They get rid of dangerous or troubling factors in the world by means of strategic elimination. They are the strongest people around," Karl said. "That guy you met, Baldor? He's one of them, VIII to be specific."

An assassin?

"Wait...didn't Baldor say I could be a Number when I grew up?"

"Yeah, you're really something. He really means what he said. Baldor almost never praises anyone for anything," Karl said.

I felt better all of a sudden.

I remained silent for the rest of the car ride, mostly because I didn't want to talk too much. We arrived shortly and Karl's place.

I never did mention how big Karl's house was did I? Scratch that, house doesn't cover it, more like mansion. A very large mansion.

"Welcome home," Karl said as he opened the car door.

I stepped out slowly and jumped in surprise as the car behind me drove away.

"Hm...why don't you take the room on the second floor, over there, beside that tree. You can climb it into your room when you want. As for training, I have a huge backyard. Use it wisely. I'll serve you meals three times a day, breakfast and lunch I'll bring up to your room, but dinner, I'll expect you to come down and eat with me. I want to see you every so often," Karl said with a smile.

My stomach grumbled.

"Oh, let's have a little snack and then you can sleep for the night. I'll bring it up to your room," Karl said. "Why don't you try climbing?"

I loved a challenge. I was looking forward to the climbing in and out of my room. I jumped for the first large branch, then, using my momentum, I swung to the next branch and landed with a soft sound. I started to climb the trunk, then jumped for the next branch and pulled myself onto it. I then leapt the remainder of the distance to my room and landed, making almost no sound at all.

"He's really something," I heard Karl whisper from below.

I quickly surveyed the room. It was quite simple really, bed, closet and a small relaxing sofa. That was about it. The closet was stocked with a clean t-shirt and shorts, which I was going to use for my pyjamas. There was a laundry chute in the corner of my room, which I assumed was for throwing my old clothes down.

About a minute later, there was a small knock on the door, and I leapt off the sofa to answer it. There was no one there. I looked down and saw a tray with some pudding on the floor, along with a glass of milk.

Ah, milk.

I took the tray and brought it into my room, noisily munching the food and drinking the milk. After that, I left the tray outside my door again, changed into the t-shirt and shorts, dropped my clothes down the laundry chute and collapsed on my bed.

I almost fell asleep immediately, quite happy.


	6. Awakening

**Chapter 6: Awakening**

It was quite a slow morning. I heard a small knock on the door and I sat up straight, running over to the door. I opened it slowly and peered outside. There was a tray with breakfast lying on the ground and no one in sight. I bent down and carefully picked up the tray, and finished all the food on it within a matter of seconds. I had almost forgotten that I was an orphan a while ago.

After eating, I sat there. I didn't know what I was supposed to do anymore. I got up and paced around the room a couple times until I noticed my gun sitting on a table in the corner. I walked over to it and picked it up.

Man, I missed holding this. Even if it was only one night, it felt good to have the gun in my hand again.

I caught the slightest movement in the corner of my eye. Then, all of a sudden, out of impulse, I leapt from the bedroom window, out to the tree. I slowly swung down the trunk, using the branches provided and landed with a soft thump.

"Good morning," Karl greeted, "how did you sleep?"

I didn't feel like talking, so I just nodded.

"Well, that's good," Karl responded, apparently not offended at all. "Go along then, do whatever you want."

Do whatever you want. It took a while for me to process those words through my brain. Do whatever you want. I've never been told that before.

What I didn't notice was that Karl had disappeared again while I had been thinking. I still didn't really trust him, but I was grateful for the home, food and rounds. As much as I wanted to survive on my own, I couldn't deny that he was giving me life support.

I sighed. I didn't want to think anymore. I could see Karl watching me from the window anyways, I didn't think he would stop staring at me until I did something, so, I broke into a run.

Let's go, 50 laps.

I regretted that decision. Karl's yard was larger than it looked. I could barely do 40, let alone 50. I decided that I would jog the rest, didn't want to look bad while Karl was watching. I was kind of annoyed at my own weakness though. I promised myself that I would be able to do 100 laps by the time I left this place.

Next up was going to be, jumps. The tree beside my bedroom window was perfect for that. The branches were placed at pretty much even intervals; perfect for measuring progress. I leapt for the first branch, which was pretty low. Not that much of a problem. I jumped to the ground again and leapt for the second branch, which I reached with a bit of difficulty. But the third one, when I tried for the third one, I missed it and landed quite painfully on the second branch on my stomach. Ouch. As for jumps, I was going to be able to do 5 branches by the time I got out of here.

Push-ups and sit-ups were standard for any workouts. I did approximately 30 push ups before I completely collapsed. 90, I resolved to do at least 90. As for sit-ups, I managed 80 no problem before I couldn't do anymore. I was aiming for 150 with sit-ups.

And last but not least, target practice. I picked a couple of cans out of the recycling bins at the sides of the mansion and brought them around to the back again. I threw them up carefully and took aim. All 5 of the bullets hit the can at different places. Not what I was going for, but at least they hit the can. I threw them up again, and shot 5 more times. The cans fell down almost completely deformed. I would have to get more cans. Darn it. Next time, I was going to hit the same spot on the cans. That was my goal.

Now that I set my benchmarks, the practicing was easy. I continued like this day after day until a strange women showed up one day. I stared in the window and could see Karl pouring tea for a women suited up in black holding a black sabre. I walked cautiously towards the door to get a closer look.

Sephiria's POV

"So he's the kid, Karl?"

"Yep...he's a natural, a genius if you ask me," Karl said calmly.

I stared at him. He stared back with wonder.

That kid...his eyes, it's like they're speaking to me.

_I trust no one. I live to kill. If you get in my way, I won't hesitate to pull the trigger._

What a good candidate. He's got great potential.

Train's POV

It was at this moment that I opened the door.

"Oh hello Train," Karl greeted. "This is Sephiria, chief commander of the Chronos Numbers."

I nodded in greeting. She smiled back.

"Well then, Karl, I'll expect you to raise him appropriately," the woman called Sephiria said.

And without another word, she got up and strode out the front door.


	7. An Unfortunate Encounter

**Chapter 7: An Unfortunate Encounter**

Several years passed like this. Day by day, I could sense improvement within myself. I got stronger, faster; my ability to adapt to changes increased and I had made almost all the goals I had originally set for myself. I thought I could call myself strong now.

I was wrong.

A man showed up the next day that tweaked my memory. I thought back to the police station incident...

_"I'm Baldor, and uh...you must be Train Heartnet. Let me introduce you to Heimdall, my partner," Baldor said._

Baldor! Right, that was his name.

_"Fine, fine. Come back in a few years. You can TRY to kill him then," Karl said, winking at me._

I didn't think he would possibly be coming here looking for a rematch, but somehow, I was ready. I wanted to see the pain on his face. I wanted to...beat him.

"Where's the kid?" Baldor's voice rang from downstairs.

Karl chuckled, "Upstairs, but I wouldn't shout if I were you. Train-kun gets in a bad mood if he wakes up early."

"I want that kid now, Karl," Baldor said.

I was about to enjoy myself. I loaded my gun and quickly swept the door open.

"Ah! Here he comes now," Karl said, "but you'll be sorry for waking him up."

"What? I don't even hear.." Baldor started...

A split fraction of a second later, I had jumped from the balcony on the second floor down to the first, sleeping a wake a leaves in my trail. The wind blew as I held him at gunpoint.

"You wanted me?"

Baldor started to laugh.

"Haha. You've improved, you piece of trash," Baldor said, leaping back from me.

"Um...hold on, can I get through here?" Karl asked.

And we both waited patiently until he was back inside his house. After that, it was war.

I got cocky, after catching him unaware.

"Mind if I kill you?"

"Not really, because that won't be a concern. In fact, I was going to ask you the same thing," Baldor said.

"Not a problem."

I wasn't concerned about dying right now. I didn't think I would.

He made the first move. He swung Heimdall around, aiming for my head.

"Let's hear it crack," he said.

It was way too slow for me, personally, I dodged by rolling to the right without a problem, shooting a few bullets as I moved. Baldor drew Heimdall back and knocked the bullets aside.

"Is that all, kid?" Baldor taunted, "you haven't improved at all."

I'd show him. The battle raged on. I could sense that with each stroke, he started moving faster and faster. I didn't feel tired yet, but I could sense that my movements were slowing down slowly. I was still able to keep up with him, but I didn't want him to sense that I was slowing.

"Your movements are slowing, kid," he said.

Darn. That plan failed. He, on the other hand, seemed to be more energized after toying with me. That was when I realized something important.

He was just toying with me.

He didn't even use his full strength yet.

No, he was testing mine.

The world suddenly became very small, so very small. It felt like I was confined in a box, and that my growth was confined there too. It shattered all how I had.

I thought I was stronger.

I thought I could have beaten him.

I thought that I would even stand a chance.

I was wrong.

That sudden realization hit me hard. I was insignificant and small in this world. I didn't know what I should have done. Years of practicing got me nowhere. I wanted more challenges, to meet new people.

What else was I suppposed to do?

I ran off in the middle of our battle. I had nothing to live for.

"Train, wait!" Karl called.

I didn't look back, didn't want to. I didn't want to feel that I was weaker than anybody in this world.

Truthfully, I wanted to be the best.


	8. Looking for Train

**Chapter 8: Looking for Train**

I had no aim, no purpose, and no place to go either. I just kept running forwards into the rain, I needed to clear my head, needed to go off...somewhere.

Karl's POV

"Dammit Baldor! Why did you have to go off and do that?"

"Do what?" Baldor asked, swinging Heimdall around.

"I know that you're stronger than him, but you didn't have to make him feel completely helpless like that!"

"It's not like I was going to hold back on him," Baldor said. "Kid's pretty good."

"But still! I give up. Get the heck out of here. I'm calling Sephiria."

"Alright, alright, I'll be going now," Baldor said.

Baldor strolled over to his car and entered the passenger's seat. I watched as the car slowly turned and drove away, down the road.

"Dammit, what do I do now?"

I rushed into the house and grabbed the first phone I could find. I dialed the first number that came to mind and waited patiently for the reciever.

"Hello?" a young woman's voice asked.

"Hello, Sephiria, I have a problem."

"Is this Karl?" Sephiria asked.

"Yes, um...how should I put this? Um...Train ran away."

"Train, yes, that kid right?" Sephiria asked.

She sounded surprisingly calm.

"What are we going to do?"

"I'll send out some of the Numbers on a search party, don't worry Karl, we'll find him in good time," Sephiria said.

"Thank you."

I hung up abruptly.

"Dammit...how could I let it come to this?"

I paced around the kitchen several times until it hit me.

"Why am I standing here? I should be looking for him too, I couldn't possibly allow talent like that to go to waste!"

I leapt out of the front door of the mansion and jumped into my car hastily in pursuit of Train. I didn't think I'd find him, but I didn't want to give up and leave the matter in Sephiria's hand; I'd taken quite a liking to that boy.

Train's POV

Where to go? Where to go? I ran forward aimlessly. After several hours of running, I'd decided I'd spend some time in the wild, to do some training by myself. I needed to put my life in danger 24/7. It's the only way I would get stronger. In doing so, I unwillingly threw away all my emotions to live on as the strongest gunman in the world, able to defy death itself.

"Sorry Karl, I've caused you trouble yet again, haven't I?"


	9. Recruitment

**Chapter 9: Recruitment**

Several more years passed...

It had been easy to dodge the surveillance of the Chronos Numbers. There were only a few looking for me anyways. I just continued training everyday until the kid I once was finally developed a gun technique unparallelled to that of anyone else. Train Heartnet was my name.

I started to go around to various mansions purposely tripping the security alarm and trying to make it through all the traps just for the fun of it. I would usually have to end up killing the owner, but that didn't matter much to me. In fact, I started feeling some excitement in killing these snobby rich people. I always licked my lower lip in anticipation before a raid.

Sephiria's POV

"Yes, I know Karl, that man that goes around killing rich mansion owners."

"Don't you think it's possible that...?" Karl asked.

"It's quite probable, knowing the kid's past."

"Well, you're going to have to stop him," Karl said.

"Yes, I know. I want to recruit him for Chronos anyways. He'd make an excellent eraser."

"How come you weren't able to find him after all these years?" Karl asked.

"He's kept himself in hiding and avoided any contact with the Chronos Numbers at all. He's blown up some mansions, but he always disappeared right after. He's left no ... traces..."

"Huh? What do you mean?" Karl asked.

"Hold on, mansion...rich people... Karl!"

"What?" Karl asked.

"He's raided most of the mansions in your area..."

I heard a gasp on the other end of the phone.

"Come to my place right away," Karl said.

"Understood, this may be a perfect opportunity."

"I'll warn my guards ahead of time. See you in a few hours," Karl said.

I hung up.

Train Heartnet, just how much have you changed since a few years ago?

Train's POV

Tonight, I'd be having fun blowing up the large mansion I'd been eyeing for a while now. It was going to be so entertaining.

As always, I readied myself at the front door, scouting the perimeter.

"Hey, you're here! He's HERE! Who are you? This is private prop..." a man called.

BANG! It was either him or me. A couple of other guards approached me slowly.

"Hey Joon! I heard a gunshot, are you alri...?" a man asked.

Another deafening shot.

The other men backed away in fear.

"THERE'S AN INTRUDER!!!" one of them yelled.

I would have killed him, but this always made jobs more entertaining.

Lights immediately flickered on in the mansion. I shot down all the guards at the gate and took a step into the garden.

All of a sudden, I was overcome by dizziness and I staggered forward.

Deja vu.

I scanned the mansion once more and suddenly, I had flashbacks of my younger years.

Yep, there was no mistaking it, this was it.

The good news was, I had made the connection. The bad news was, I had made the connection.

Karl! Dammit. I couldn't blow this place up... What to do. What to do?

I dashed out of the place as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, not fast enough.

"TRAIN-KUN!" a voice came.

I instinctively pointed my gun at the source of the noise.

"Train-kun..." the man faltered.

I hesitated a mere second and was immediately surrounded by 3 people, 2 of whom I recognized.

"Karl..."

"This is him, Sephiria?" the tall man asked.

"There's no mistaking it, Belze, that pair of eyes," Sephiria said.

"Oh my, he's grown quite a bit," Baldor said.

"Get the heck out of my way."

"He's extremely skilled," the man named Belze said.

"GET THE HECK OUT OF MY WAY!"

"We didn't come here to capture you or anything," Sephiria said. "We came here to recruit you as a top eraser for Chronos."

"Not interested."

"Actually, you've already eliminated half of our targets this month, you should be proud. You have contributed greatly to the world's stability," Belze said.

I stayed silent.

"Join Chronos and fight for the peace and stability of the world," Sephiria said.

I groaned and made several slow steps for the entrance. I immediately heard the sound of a gust of wind and brandished my gun. When I turned around, it was apparent Sephiria had drawn her sword and pointed it at my neck, while I pointed my gun at her forehead. We were locked in a stalemate.

"Oh ho! He's improved more than I thought," Baldor said.

"You'd be a great asset to our team of Numbers," Sephiria said. "If you don't join us, I'll be sure to kill you on the spot right now. A dangerous person like you can't possibly be allowed to roam free."

I thought about it for a while, and finally...

"Can I kill without the authorities on my tail?"

"As long as you follow orders," was Sephiria's simple answer.

After a long pause, I decided it would be profitable for myself. And so, the Black Cat was born.


	10. As No XIII

**Chapter 10: As No. XIII**

"Your initiation ceremony is tonight," Sephiria said. "Be sure to wear this uniform to the ceremony. Here you go."

She handed me a nice dress shirt with a tie and matching pants.

"And here, don't forget this either," Sephiria said.

A black overcoat.

"You've already gotten your XIII tattoo done at our specialized underground services so you're all set. 7:00 sharp. Don't be late," Sephiria said.

"Understood, chief."

A black overcoat, eh? Heh heh. This would be very interesting.

I hadn't counted on Chronos providing all my necessary monetary funds, that was just an added plus. I bought a nice apartment several blocks away from Chronos' main operating building. It was quite convienient really.

I hastily changed to make my 7:00 appointment. After, I rushed out the front door and ran right into a person who was obviously, just like me, in a hurry.

"Ouch...oh..." the woman said.

I froze there, not sure how I should have reacted until she spoke.

"Oh, sorry...I wasn't watching where I was going, my bad," the woman said.

I nodded and pressed the button for the elevator. It arrived in a couple of seconds. She got up slowly.

"You're new here, aren't you?" she asked.

I didn't answer.

"I knew it! I can tell just my looking at your face!" she rambled on.

I turned away from her.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

I didn't answer, again.

She laughed. "Haha, you're funny, my name's Saya, nice to meet you. By the way, if you want to get somewhere, it's faster to use the stairs...bye!" she yelled as the elevator door opened.

...Then why was she riding in the elevator with me? Never mind that, oh shoot. It's only a couple minutes to 7. I ran through the elevator door, right past her and continued down the street.

One block...two blocks...red light, shoot.

I jumped onto the roof of a nearby building and leapt for another one. The only way I could make it now was like this.

Three blocks...four blocks...five blocks...almost there... Ah, the thirteenth block, how ironic.

I quickly jumped off the building roof, landed on the ground and rushed into the building. The Chief was already waiting there for me.

"Ah, just in time, Heartnet, so, follow me please. I'll lead you to the room," Sephiria said.

I nodded and trailed after her when she started walking. She lead me into a large dimly lit room with about 20 people inside.

"Follow me, Heartnet," she said again.

I followed her into the center of crowd. I caught various murmurs such as "that's him," "he's only 18," "he must really be something," and "who is this guy?"

"Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you with great honour, the newest member of the elite unit of Chronos known as the Time Guardians," Sephiria said.

She handed me a large, elegant case.

"Train Heartnet, no. XIII, I present to you the decorated black gun, Hades, as proof of your initiation into the Time Guardians," Sephiria said.

I hesitantly picked up the gun with my left hand. My hand shuddered a bit when I first grasped it, because it was a bit heavier than I thought it would have been, but it really wasn't a big deal.

"Let us work together for the sake of Chronos and maintaining peace and stability in the world," Sephiria said. "Everyone – back to your original duties please. Sorry for interrupting your activities. Dismissed."

And with that, all the people in the room slowly walked out of the room, but you could easily sense that they were in a rush. I stood there, a bit confused.

"You're wondering why I made such a big fuss over a ceremony that barely lasted 5 minutes right?" Sephiria asked.

I nodded reluctantly.

"Very simply, this was something that absolutely needed to be done. However, we erasers are among the busiest workers in Chronos. We can't waste precious time by sitting through long ceremonies," Sephiria said. "I hope you understand."

"No, it's perfectly fine."

I quickly put away the hardess in my gun holster. A perfect fit.

"Are you free right now, Heartnet? Care to join me for dinner?" Sephiria asked. "I trust you didn't have time to eat before you got here."

I thought she just said that she didn't have a lot of time on her hands. Oh well...

"Yes, Chief."

"Then, follow me please," she said.

I nodded curtly and followed her. We stepped into an elevator and took it to the top floor of the building. The door opened and the entrance was immediately flooded by bright lights. We had stepped into a first-class restaurant. I glanced at the ceiling in awe.

"This way please," a woman said as she lead us to our seats.

I followed Sephiria to our seat. We both ordered and started a gently conversation.

"Is there something you wanted to talk to me about, Chief?"

"Yes. There are a couple of rules I need to mention to you. Firstly, fighting among Chronos Numbers is strictly forbidden," Sephiria said.

And I wanted to rip apart the guy with the rocket launcher too...

"Secondly, you must never betray Chronos. Obey all orders from me and complete all your missions. If you do, you will be rewarded accordingly. If you don't, you will be severely punished," Sephiria said.

"Understood."

"Heartnet, do make sure to take care. The weapons we use may aid us greatly in our work, however, when incorrectly used, the weapons we own may end up owning us. For that reason, why do you fire the gun, who do you fire the gun at, never forget those things that are truly important," Sephiria said.

I took a long hard pause to think about what she said. After a long silent moment of speculation, I nodded curtly. Sephiria nodded gently in return.

The food arrived shortly and we both ate.

"I will call you when we need your services," Sephiria said.

And with that, I left. I rushed back to my apartment and tucked myself into bed. After all, as Chronos' most skilled assassin, I'd need the rest.


	11. One Hinderance Too Many

**Chapter 11: One Hinderance Too Many**

Got a call from the chief. Apparently I'm needed for some mission. I grabbed the hardess and left promptly. I had done some shooting practice with the gun earlier. The weight had taken some getting used too, but this hardess truly felt like it was built for me. It was the absolute perfect shape for my hand.

A perfect fit.

I rushed out of my unit and towards the elevator until it hit me.

_"Haha, you're funny, my name's Saya, nice to meet you. By the way, if you want to get somewhere, it's faster to use the stairs...bye!"_

The stairs, eh?

I turned around and looked around for the stairs at the end of the hallway. They weren't really that hard to find, not when all the emergency exits were pointing at them; "in case of a fire, use the stairs."

I opened the door and started down the stairs, until I realized I was such an idiot and darted back up again.

"Stairs? I'm such an idiot, I'm pretty much on the top floor."

I paused to open the door to my floor again, but decided otherwise.

Top floor.

I rushed up to the roof of the apartment using the stairs. The door burst open at the top and I leapt out and prepared to start jumping roofs. I got on the edge of the building and was about to jump when I sensed someone behind me.

"Followed my advice, eh?" a woman asked.

I turned around.

"You're!"

"Gosh, finally got a word out of you, eh? Well, I'll see you around," she called as she leapt off of the roof.

Who was that woman? Honestly, she was giving me a bit of fright, seeming to appear behind me all the time.

Oh well, I didn't have time to think about it, I needed to get to Chronos right away, or the Chief would pound me.

Instinctively, I leapt from roof to roof and dropped down to the ground in front of Chronos' main operating building.

Heh. What do you know? The stairs really were faster.

Without another thought, I entered the building quickly and made for the Chief's office.

"Heartnet. Today we've got you on a S-rank assassination mission. I'm going to pair you up with Belze so he can see how skilled you are," Sephiria said. "Your target is an owner of the corrupted police facility. The details of the mission are in this envelope. Please take a look yourself."

"All I have to do is kill the guy, right?"

"Yes, but there are strategic maps and diagrams of the facility in this envelope. Are you sure you don't want to take a look?" Sephiria asked.

I walked straight out the door.

"I'll report back when he's dead."

Just when I was about to walk out of the room, I heard a voice.

"Aren't you going to wait for me?" Belze asked.

"Don't slow me down."

"Touchy guy, Sephiria," Belze said, as he followed after me.

"Hurry up."

I didn't have the patience to be waiting for anybody. I just wanted to get that job done quickly and efficiently. Didn't care about anything else. Although, I was a bit surprised when that man actually managed to keep up with my climb up the stairs and jumps on the roofs.

"I'm a Number too. It's not that easy to throw me off your tail," Belze said.

I groaned. It seemed that I was going to have this guy tailing me for a while.

When we arrived at the police station, he started acting authoritative.

Belze's POV

"No. XIII, hold on, we need to first make a plan of attack."

He seemed to ignore me and started scanning the perimeters.

"Are you paying me any attention at all?"

It's like he pretended that I wasn't there and started looking around for...things.

"Heartnet!" I half-screamed, only, it was barely a whisper because we didn't want to be caught now.

"57..." he murmured.

"What?"

"57 guards in the front, 16 hidden security cameras and electric fencing all around, this is going to be easier than I thought," he said calmly.

This guy...he's ascertained the number of traps, count of guards and mood of this place without looking at the files in mere minutes. He is no ordinary...

Train's POV

"Look, what's your name, number, whatever?"

"I'm No. II, your superior under Sephiria," Belze said.

"Right, can you just stay here? It'll be easier for me if you don't get in the way."

"That's insulting," was his simple answer.

"I will be back and done in 20 minutes max. If not, you can bust into the place all you want."

"You're getting really cocky. Don't underestimate a S-rank mission. I'll give you 30 minutes," Belze said.

"Doesn't make a difference..."

I quickly leapt off the ground and into the heavily guarded compound. The 10 feet tall electric fence was no match for me. It was almost like trying to jump over flat ground, which didn't involve the "over" in jumping over at all.

I shot out the first two security cameras easily. Some of the guards seemed to have heard the ruckus and came over to stop me.

"Freeze, intruder!" one of them yelled.

I turned and shot him in the chest immediately. Then, I spun around and kicked the other guard in the face, shooting him in the process.

I wasn't going to leave a single survivor.

I gunned down several more men while shooting out the security cameras and entered the police compound casually. Everytime several guards approached, I'd shoot them out, and then nail the security cameras behind them.

"Intruder in Sector B, deploy all units to Sector B," the intercom rang.

In a few minutes, I found myself surrounded by several hundred men in an open field. I would have guessed that this was the training ground.

"Fun."

They all charged at me, but they were obviously inexperienced with weapon handling and hardly gave me a scratch at all. I easily massacred all the people in the training grounds and presumably all the people in the compound at all. There was only one person left standing, crouched in a corner and backing away.

"Im-impossible, all those men, and you don't have a single scratch. What are you?" the man stuttered.

I laughed.

"Welcome to the real world, my world. It really doesn't feel that great to be you now, does it?"

A single shot rang out and his body lay slump against the wall.

"Mission complete. Time to report back to Belze."

Belze's POV

This guy was way too cocky. I didn't think he was fit to be a Number at all anymore, honestly.

15:52...51...50

The seconds ticked away. There was no way he'd be back in time. It was impossible, even for someone of his calibre.

A shadow drifted past me and I lifted Gungnir.

Don't tell me he got caught... No way... Impossible...

"Did I go over time?" he asked.

He barely took 15 minutes to complete the minutes, even under his estimated time. This guy...he just infiltrated one of the top five most heavily guarded facilities, massacred everyone within the compound, shot out all the security cameras, avoided all the traps...without getting a single scratch. He's...a monster.

"That's why I told you not to get in my way," he said.

I chuckled.

"I wouldn't have gotten in your way, but your performance has been exceptional, good job. You can call it a day, I'll file a report to Sephiria immediately."

"Understood," he said.

And he disappeared silently into the shadows.

Geez, he's so uptight, but he makes a great eraser. He's almost legendary.


	12. The Birth of the Black Cat

**Chapter 12: The Birth of the Black Cat**

Sephiria's POV

"Take a look at this, Belze, the latest news in the Underworld."

I tossed him the latest Underworld newspaper.

"Last night...new figure...pro assassin...raided one of the top five most guarded facilities around here...slaughtered everybody...only trace on cameras was a flash of black...speed and skill are unmatched, almost cat-like..." Belze read. "He's only been on one mission, and they're this afraid of him?"

"Keep reading please, Belze."

"People say that the very sight of him embodies 'bad luck' itself. Most authorities have adopted the name 'Black Cat'..." Belze read. "They, really...They're out of their mind."

"Like you said, he's only been on one single mission and he's already risen to the top of the Underworld in terms of fame."

Belze sighed deeply.

"Not only that, he's probably surpassed most of the Numbers we currently have. I hate to admit it, but he's really...the best of the best," Belze said. "Even you or I might get in trouble when confronting him."

I chuckled the slightest bit. There was a knock at the door.

"Got an appointment with someone?" Belze asked.

"Yes, I thought that _he_ might like to see this."

"Might as well," Belze said.

"Come in."

Train's POV

I responded to her voice and stepped into the Chief's office. By now, I knew my way around. It was really easy to jump from place to place within Chronos.

"You called, Chief?"

"Yes, No. XIII, please take a look at this. It's about your raid a couple of days ago," Sephiria said.

Honestly, I don't care...I really don't.

"I don't care to remember the raids I perform."

"As expected of an assassin of your calibre," Sephiria said, with a hint of annoyance in her tone. "Read this."

She tossed me the front page of the newspaper. I read it over quickly. I didn't bother with the minor details. Only a few words caught my attention anyways: skilled assassin, embodiment of bad luck...and...I paused at the next line.

Black Cat, eh?

"You've already given the authorities quite a scare," Sephiria said.

"Your...point?"

"Nothing in particular, just that your performance has been exceptional," Sephiria said.

"You don't need to flatter me with words. Why did you call me here today?"

"Your personality...you really are fit to be an assassin," Belze said.

I didn't cast him a single glance. He laughed heartily in the background.

"Here's your next target," Sephiria said.

She tossed me a small envelope, and I pulled out the photograph. I gasped at the photo.

"A woman? With a child?"

"Is there something wrong?" Sephiria asked.

To be honest, I was a little shocked... I never expected I'd have to target women and children too. In my mind, they weren't the important ones in the world and tended not to be worth killing.

"I prefer not to target the weak."

"This women is an expert in martial arts. Don't underestimate her," Sephiria said.

I paused for a moment. The idea of hurting a woman with a child still really bothered me.

"Is there a problem, Heartnet?" Sephiria asked.

I pondered silently for a moment. Belze looked at me thoughtfully.

"I'll take this one," Belze said.

"Belze?" Sephiria asked.

"I'll take this mission, Heartnet can take mine," Belze said.

What the heck? Who told him to interfere?

"I don't need you to cover for me."

To be honest, I was a little glad. Killing a woman, or even a child? I've never heard of such a philosophy.

"Your mission is much more fascinating than mine, so, let's switch up," Belze said.

I was the slightest bit bewildered, but I just nodded and shut up. Sephiria sighed.

"Okay then, here's your new job," Sephiria said, passing me an envelope.

I threw the old envelope back to her and opened the new one.

"Intercept a cargo transport?"

"Yes, they're moving important materials to our enemies. I want you to obliterate every single one of them and come back here with the cargo," Sephiria said.

"Understood."

I didn't need to hear anymore.

"I'll report back later, Chief."

"As expected of you," Sephiria responded.

I turned around and walked out the door, but I could still hear them talking behind my back.

"Apparently you can't give him missions with woman and children," Belze said.

"Anybody as skilled as him must have a fatal flaw," Sephiria chuckled.


	13. Speculation

**Chapter 13: Speculation**

I was standing on the balcony of my apartment, thinking about my day.

To be honest, I was quite glad Belze had interfered. Again, I wasn't about to admit it to anyone. Despite my cold, heartless exterior, I would say that I still have feelings deep down, but these other feelings were insignificant compared to my hatred for this world.

I hate everything about this planet. I hate Zagiene for murdering my parents. I hate Baldor for underestimating me. I hate Karl for treating me like a kid. I hate the creator of the universe for having this kind of a life planned out for me. I haven't even gotten to make a single, definitive choice in life. They've all been made for me.

Unfortunately, it's too late to turn back. Maybe this is all I'll every be, another tool used to ensure the well-being of everyone else.

I don't like being used.

But, I don't have a choice now, do I?

I sighed heavily. I probably needed to get going on the mission. Cargo transport? Didn't look that hard.

The roofs were definetly easier to traverse than the roads. It became a habit of mine by now; whenever I had to go somewhere, I'd always end up jumping on the roofs. Strange thing is, I never saw that woman again. She must've gotten herself killed somewhere. Women these days...

I bolted out of the door from the stairs and traveled to my destination. It was a rural place on the far side of town that they were moving the supplies too. I guessed that they thought it wouldn't attract as much attention.

They don't have a clue who they're dealing with.

I climbed to a taller place to get a better look at my surroundings. At the stroke of midnight, I saw a straight procession of vehicles driving towards the area. This was going to easy. At most, I estimated about 20 people inside the vehicles... Sephiria, really, sending me on these childish missions. She's wasting my time.

I leapt down from my position and jumped on the hood of the first car.

"You're...you're that...new...assassin...you're the B-B-Black C-Cat...aren't y-you?" the driver croaked.

I chuckled a bit, remembering what Sephiria had shown me earlier in the day.

"That's right, I'm here to deliver some bad luck."

I immediately drew out my gun and shot him. He didn't have any time to react at all. His partner sitting beside him actually had the time to pull out his gun in self-defense, and fired at me.

Unfortunately for him, his reaction time was 10 seconds slow. By that time, I'd already jumped off the hood of the car and approached him from the side. A single gun shot rang and the guy slumped over his chair.

By this time, the other people in the other vehicles had found enough time to exit and make some sense of the situation. More fun for me. I looked around, about 10 or 12 people with guns surrounded me. I gave a smug shrug.

"You think you can beat us that easily? Mr. Black Cat?" a man said. "You'd better take a better look around."

Apparently these guys thought they were smart enough by stuffing one of the cargo trucks full of bodyguards to guard the cargo.

You guys, really are such idiots.

About 30 people emerged from the rear end of the truck and surrounded me. One of them was carrying a bazooka too. I laughed.

Really, how much attention to they want to attract to their secret transaction? Idiots, the lot of them.

"What about now, Black Cat? What are you going to do?" the man asked again. "I bet even Chronos' information network didn't figure that out. Heh."

Pointless questions.

"Hold on, let me check," I said, mockingly.

I slowly pulled out the envelope the chief gave me while the man stood there with a confused expression on his face.

"One cargo truck thought to have hidden bodyguards," I read. "Huh? Guess their information network is reliable to some degree."

"No...no way!" the man denied. "It's not possible that you know about it, we were trying to keep it top secret."

I through the package to the side.

"Don't worry, I don't bother reading these...now where were we? Ah, yes."

I fired three times in a row quickly, knocking down the three people closest to me before they even had a chance to react. I then proceeded to the rest.

Three down, 50 or so to go? At least they didn't just give up at the sight at me like the driver of the first car did. I hated targets with no malice or anything.

The man in the front tackled me, hoping to catch me off guard. I merely stepped towards the left and he landed on the floor, right behind me. Without looking, I shot the ground behind me and I felt the man cease breathing.

I smacked my lips.

After a short couple of minutes or so, there was a pile of dead bodies lying in front of my feet. I dialed my cellphone for the pick-up crew. They arrived within minutes.

"Good job, No. XIII," a masked man said. "As expected of you."

I nodded coldly and left the dirty work to them.

As I made my way back to the city, I was thinking about what I wanted to do that night. I wasn't really tired, so I didn't really want to sleep. That's when I decided on a more enticing activity.

"Prowling the streets, that's what a cat does, no?"

I chuckled to myself. Black Cat. Ha.


	14. By Night

**Chapter 14: By Night**

The busy city streets were a beautiful sight at night. I made my way into a grocery store, bought a bottle of good ol' milk, and continued walking.

I waltzed down the streets and found myself blinded by the light. A bit too bright in my opinion. I gave up trying to adjust to the light and turned for a darker alley instead, much more peaceful, much more comfortable.

I hadn't had quality time to myself for awhile. It was always, Chronos this, Chronos that; everything I did lately was linked to Chronos in some way, but I dealt with it. They provided me with a reason to live, and I provided them with a superior assassin to get rid of various pieces of trash, not that I've ever been allowed to know how they select their targets. That kind of bothered me actually. But, given my current situation, I couldn't care less.

I continuously debated with myself throughout the night, when I finally gave up and made my way back to the roof of my apartment. I lied down on the roof, straightening and stretching my muscles.

I felt a sudden nudge and to my surprise, a strange looking cat appeared beside me, seeming to want food.

"Sorry," I muttered, "I don't have anything."

The cat nodded and pointed at the bottle of milk in my hand.

"Oh this?" I asked with reluctance.

No one steals my milk from me, but the cat seemed insistent; apparently he wouldn't stop bothering me until I gave the milk up. So I did.

I let a bit of milk trickle down, right into the cat's mouth. He seemed to relax in the smell of the milk, and then thanked me when he was done. I nodded accordingly and the cat took his leave.

I must be going insane, feeding cats. This isn't a charity.

After I'd had enough of the night breeze, I made my way back inside the building. Strangely, I caught a glimpse of the woman again and broke into a run. I didn't like talking to her. She was strangely cheerful and it felt awkward to be around because she gave off such an awkward aura. I slammed the door before she could even say a word to me.

A good night's sleep, that's what I hoped for. Personally, I think I deserved it.


	15. Empty Words

**Chapter 15: Empty Words**

Another phone call. Another assignment.

Some millionaire black-marketing marjuana. Not that important in my opinion, but it's an assignment I can't ignore.

This time, I didn't bother going to see Sephiria first. I've done enough assignments that I already know the drill. I told her when she phoned in and she protested, but she gave in in the end.

The Black Cat doesn't lose.

I proceeded directly to the millionaire's house. Philip Jameson. What a lame name. I couldn't care less though.

As usual, I scouted around the perimeter. Nothing out of the ordinary. These millionaires could spend more money on security. I doubt that these rich people have any brains at all. It's a wonder how they ever became rich.

I would have liked to start off with a big bang at the entrance, but being an assassin, it's more important to get the job done than to make it look flashy.

With one large jump, I leapt over the wall and landed in a bush, on top of one of the security cameras. I quickly took that one out and aimed for the next two closest to me: one of the edge of the building, and another near the pond.

Piece of cake, but strangely enough, there were hardly any guards. I was sure I saw at least a couple hundred when I was scouting, but I barely killed 10 on my way in. Not my problem how many defenses they put up though, I'd just break them all down anyways.

That's when I realized that something felt wrong. An ambush, maybe? But it didn't matter, I could take on anybody. Heh. The Black Cat. That still made me chuckle everytime I thought of it. People were just making this too easy.

I quietly entered the front door, and I was stunned at the size of the main entry room. I could have sworn that this place alone was the size of about a mansion. I was too caught up in the moment and rather disturbed when the lights immediately flickered off. It was pitch black, even I couldn't see a thing. Power outage? Yeah right.

I was right. It was an ambush.

I wasn't concerned about the fact that I couldn't see at all. I was more concerned about the fact that I'd let the size of a house drop my guard for even just a second.

I heard gunshots coming from all directions, shooting at the door I had just shut. Luckily, I caught a click glimpse of my surroundings before the lights switched off. I leapt straight upwards, just when they started shooting and grabbed the chandelier. Of course no one heard me and when they flicked the lights back on. I quickly glanced around, counting the number of people.

There were the hundred or so people missing from outside. It figures. Blocking my way with numbers, truly idiotic.

Of course, the people were utterly shocked to see only hundreds of bullet holes in the door. Amateurs. It only takes one bullet to kill a single person. It was then that I got annoyed at their mediocre gunning skills and I made the first gunshot from the ceiling.

I aimed for the person closest to the door and hit my target, right in the heart. Like a flock of chickens, they all looked up, too shocked to react at first. They all gathered right underneath me and I laughed heartily.

Did I mention that chickens are dumb? They were making this way too easy for me.

I shot at the light switch and the room immediately went dark again. I shot another bullet, this time aimed for the chain connecting the chandelier to the roof. It started plummeting towards the ground at a terrifying speed and I jumped at the last second to avoid collision.

I didn't waste more than 3 bullets on hundreds of people. Those pieces of trash really weren't worth the price of the bullets.

Really, it's like killing a flock of chickens.

I snickered quietly and burst through the door, trying to find this Jameson character.

Boom. A security camera. Boom. A guard. Boom. Another camera.

I take back what I said earlier about the place being understaffed. I was nearly out of bullets when I finally found Philip Jameson. It was lucky that I saved a lot of them at the entrance. Not that it mattered, really. I could always just kick or punch them when I run out out of bullets; fighting fist to fist, the classic assassin style.

The difference is, I'm not a normal assassin. I'm the top eraser for Chronos, the Black Cat.

When I found Jameson, he was in his study, looking at an email with great interest. I knocked twice on the door.

"Come in," he said, probably thinking I was the butler or something.

I quietly entered the room and walked slowly towards him, gun in hand.

"You can just put the coffee down over..." he started.

Click. I loaded and pointed the gun right at the back of his head. Slowly, he put his hands up and got to his feet.

"You! I was told their was an intruder, but I didn't think...you could have..." he stuttered slowly.

Suddenly scared, he backed away towards the wall.

"Wait a minute...you're the B-B-Bl-laa-aac-kk C-C-C-aaa-aa-tt?" he asked.

He's really lost it now. His whole body was shivering frantically. The poor thing. I keep playing along though and give him the usual phrase.

"I'm here to deliver some bad luck, Mr. Jameson," I say.

A single gunshot. A stream of blood. A job done.

As I slowly walk out of the mansion, I hear sirens on the street. The police, having heard the commotion, were probably on their way here. Before I get to the front door however, a sinister figure in a cloak stands there, beckoning me forward. Taking a closer look, I realize that I know him.

I walk straight past him.

"Good job, ," said Belze.

I don't respond.

"Huh. Don't get all cocky now," Belze says as I leave.

His words of praise are nothing to me, because when all is said and done, the only person you can truly rely on in this world is yourself. No exceptions.

Truly, no exceptions. Such a depressing world.


End file.
